Haïti: Le chancelier français Bernard Kouchner effectuera une visite officielle de 48 heures en Haïti les 25 et 26 septembre 2010. « C'est sa troisième visite en un an. Cette fois il vient seul afin de voir où on en est dans la mise en oeuvre des engagements et se rendre compte de la situation plus de huit mois après le tremblement de terre du 12 janvier et deux mois avant les élections présidentielles et législatives », a confié au Nouvelliste l'ambassadeur de France en Haïti, Didier Le Bret. Le chef de la diplomatie française, selon l'ambassadeur Le Bret, participera le samedi 25 septembre à la pose de la première pierre de la construction de l'HUEH. « C'est une manière symbolique de marquer le début de la réalisation d'un grand projet. Un accord de partenariat de 50 millions de dollars a été signé lundi dernier à New York entre le Premier ministre Jean-Max Bellerive, le secrétaire d'État américain, Hillary R. Clinton, et le ministre des Affaires étrangères français, Bernard Kouchner, pour reconstruire cet hôpital en vue d'accueillir le plus vite possible les nouvelles promotions de médecins et d'infirmières. La contribution de France est de plus de 30 millions d'euros (plus de 34 millions de dollars américains) », a-t-il dit.
« On va extraire une partie de ces fonds qui sera consacrée à la formation du personnel médical (infirmières, sages-femmes », a-t-il ajouté en indiquant que M. Kouchner sera sur le site où doit être construite la nouvelle école des infirmières. « M. Kouchner s'entretiendra avec le président René Préval sur comment lancer une réflexion sur la couverture des maladies », selon M. Le Bret.
Un appui budgétaire important
« En début 2011, on aura atteint 40 millions d'euros d'appui budgétaire à l'Etat haïtien. C'est un appui considérable, car il y a très peu de pays au monde à bénéficier récemment d'un appui budgétaire de cette ampleur de la France », a indiqué l'ambassadeur. « C'est, a-t-il souligné, presqu'une marque de fabrique de la coopération française de traiter directement avec l'Etat haïtien pour financer les politiques publiques nationales. L'utilisation de ces fonds dépendra de l'Etat haïtien. Il peut faire de l'appui à la balance des paiements, acquérir du matériel dans le cadre de la reconstruction, acheter des semences, payer des fonctionnaires, financer des programmes scolaires s'il le souhaite », a dit Didier Le Bret, satisfait du rapprochement et de la bonne santé des relations entre Paris et Port-au-Prince.
Outre la visite du président français Nicolas Sarkozy le 17 février - premier chef d'Etat de l'Hexagone à visiter Haïti depuis son Indépendance - cinq autres ministres français sont venus en Haïti depuis le tremblement de terre du 12 janvier.
http://www.lenouvelliste.com/article.php?PubID=1&ArticleID=83975&PubDate=2010-09-25
samedi 25 septembre 2010
5 morts et plusieurs dizaines de blessés, bilan partiel d'un violent orage
Plusieurs personnes ont été tuées lors d'une rafale et des orages dans la région métropolitaine hier après midi. Un premier bilan fourni par la Direction de la Protection Civile (DPC) fait état de 5 morts et plusieurs blessés. La majorité des victimes sont recensées dans les camps de fortune disséminés dans plusieurs quartiers de Port-au-Prince et Delmas notamment.
Les violents bourrasques ont provoqué la chute de nombreux arbres, des pylônes électriques et de panneaux publicitaires sur la chaussée. Les toitures métalliques de plusieurs maisonnettes ont été arrachées par les vents. De nombreux Port-au-Princiens pris de panique couraient dans toutes les directions durant la quinzaine de minutes qu'a duré les rafales de vents.
La chute d'un amandier à Nazon (Delmas) a causé le décès dune fillette et d'une adolescente. Des antennes des compagnies téléphoniques ont été également endommagées lors de ces rafales qui n'ont pas été prévues par le Centre National de Météorologie.
Les chutes des sémaphores, des arbres et des pylônes électriques avaient provoqué de grands bouchons dans plusieurs artères de la capitale. Les embouteillages ont contraint plusieurs milliers d'employés et de commerçants du centre ville a regagné leurs domiciles à pied.
De nombreux quartiers de la région métropolitaine, Port-au-Prince, Carrefour et Delmas, étaient privés d'électricité après la chute de nombreux pylônes.
Les millions de déplacés regroupés dans les camps d'hébergement étaient les principales victimes de cette dépression tropicale. Des milliers de tentes et des petite structure en bâches ont été emportés entraînant une détérioration des conditions de ces personnes vulnérables.
LLM / radio Métropole Haïti
http://www.metropolehaiti.com/metropole/full_une_fr.php?id=18278
Les violents bourrasques ont provoqué la chute de nombreux arbres, des pylônes électriques et de panneaux publicitaires sur la chaussée. Les toitures métalliques de plusieurs maisonnettes ont été arrachées par les vents. De nombreux Port-au-Princiens pris de panique couraient dans toutes les directions durant la quinzaine de minutes qu'a duré les rafales de vents.
La chute d'un amandier à Nazon (Delmas) a causé le décès dune fillette et d'une adolescente. Des antennes des compagnies téléphoniques ont été également endommagées lors de ces rafales qui n'ont pas été prévues par le Centre National de Météorologie.
Les chutes des sémaphores, des arbres et des pylônes électriques avaient provoqué de grands bouchons dans plusieurs artères de la capitale. Les embouteillages ont contraint plusieurs milliers d'employés et de commerçants du centre ville a regagné leurs domiciles à pied.
De nombreux quartiers de la région métropolitaine, Port-au-Prince, Carrefour et Delmas, étaient privés d'électricité après la chute de nombreux pylônes.
Les millions de déplacés regroupés dans les camps d'hébergement étaient les principales victimes de cette dépression tropicale. Des milliers de tentes et des petite structure en bâches ont été emportés entraînant une détérioration des conditions de ces personnes vulnérables.
LLM / radio Métropole Haïti
http://www.metropolehaiti.com/metropole/full_une_fr.php?id=18278
Storm shreds aging tents in Haiti earthquake camps
(09-25) 12:09 PDT PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) --
The sudden, powerful storm that ripped through Haiti's battered capital destroyed thousands of tents in the homeless camps where more than 1.3 million people live eight months after the earthquake destroyed their homes, shelter officials said Saturday.
The death toll from Friday afternoon's storm stood at five people, including two children, and hundreds of people were reported with varying degrees of injury, Civil Protection chief Marie Alta Jean-Baptiste told The Associated Press.
Preliminary U.N. estimates had more than 2,000 tents damaged or destroyed; international shelter officials said that number could rise beyond 5,000 when assessments are complete.
The storm's effect was exacerbated by the flimsiness of tarps and tents that have been baking, soaking and flapping in the Caribbean elements since the Jan. 12 earthquake killed at least 230,000 people and left millions homeless. Hundreds of thousands of families continue living on the streets of the capital waiting for temporary housing or money to find new apartments.
"Many of the tents that were destroyed had reached their end of lifespan," said Gerhard Tauscher, shelter cluster coordinator for the International Federation of the Red Cross.
Reconstruction has barely begun despite billions of dollars pledged for Haiti in the wake of the disaster. Less than 15 percent of money promised at the U.N. donor's conference in March has been delivered. The United States, which spent more than $1.1 billion in humanitarian aid after the quake, has not delivered any of its promised long-term funds.
Wood and metal temporary shelters fared much better in the storm, suffering minimal damage. But few of the earthquake homeless have those.
Instead they continue living in tarps and tents, sometimes reinforced with metal or wood. As many as 10 percent of such shelters were destroyed in some areas of the capital by the sudden squall, with damage concentrated in central urban areas, Tauscher said.
Camp-management facilities including office tents, clinics and childcare spaces were shredded, especially in camps perched on the steep hillsides between downtown Port-au-Prince and the suburb of Petionville.
"(Our) infrastructure has been ripped up: the house, the office, child-friendly spaces. The clinic held up pretty well and there wasn't any one person hurt. But trees fell and the place looks an absolute mess," said Emmett Fitzgerald of the American Refugee Council, who manages the 26,000-person camp at Terrain Acra.
There was less damage to the north of the city at the Corail-Cesselesse camp, where residents used tools to drain water away from tents and shore up sagging homes with help from international aid and security teams, manager Bryant Castro said.
The storm was not part of any tropical system but rather a standard early-fall Caribbean storm caused by cold and dry conditions in the upper atmosphere, U.S. National Hurricane Center senior specialist Stacy Stewart told AP.
Windspeed and rainfall data were not immediately available. Based on the reports of uprooted trees and damaged tents, Stewart estimated winds might have reached 60 mph (100 kph) — a violent storm, but far below hurricane strength.
Haiti has not suffered a direct hit from a hurricane or tropical storm this year, but months of hurricane season remain. Forecasters are watching the remnants of Tropical Storm Matthew off the coast of Central America, which could transform into a "monsoon low" and threaten the Western Caribbean next week.
The impoverished nation was extremely vulnerable to damage from passing storms even before the quake. Port-au-Prince's Cite Soleil slum was flooded by rains in 2007. In 2008, four named storms struck in the space of a month, killing nearly 800 people and plunging the coastal city of Gonaives under water for weeks.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/09/25/international/i114854D02.DTL#ixzz10ZmoXxS9
The death toll from Friday afternoon's storm stood at five people, including two children, and hundreds of people were reported with varying degrees of injury, Civil Protection chief Marie Alta Jean-Baptiste told The Associated Press.
Preliminary U.N. estimates had more than 2,000 tents damaged or destroyed; international shelter officials said that number could rise beyond 5,000 when assessments are complete.
The storm's effect was exacerbated by the flimsiness of tarps and tents that have been baking, soaking and flapping in the Caribbean elements since the Jan. 12 earthquake killed at least 230,000 people and left millions homeless. Hundreds of thousands of families continue living on the streets of the capital waiting for temporary housing or money to find new apartments.
"Many of the tents that were destroyed had reached their end of lifespan," said Gerhard Tauscher, shelter cluster coordinator for the International Federation of the Red Cross.
Reconstruction has barely begun despite billions of dollars pledged for Haiti in the wake of the disaster. Less than 15 percent of money promised at the U.N. donor's conference in March has been delivered. The United States, which spent more than $1.1 billion in humanitarian aid after the quake, has not delivered any of its promised long-term funds.
Wood and metal temporary shelters fared much better in the storm, suffering minimal damage. But few of the earthquake homeless have those.
Instead they continue living in tarps and tents, sometimes reinforced with metal or wood. As many as 10 percent of such shelters were destroyed in some areas of the capital by the sudden squall, with damage concentrated in central urban areas, Tauscher said.
Camp-management facilities including office tents, clinics and childcare spaces were shredded, especially in camps perched on the steep hillsides between downtown Port-au-Prince and the suburb of Petionville.
"(Our) infrastructure has been ripped up: the house, the office, child-friendly spaces. The clinic held up pretty well and there wasn't any one person hurt. But trees fell and the place looks an absolute mess," said Emmett Fitzgerald of the American Refugee Council, who manages the 26,000-person camp at Terrain Acra.
There was less damage to the north of the city at the Corail-Cesselesse camp, where residents used tools to drain water away from tents and shore up sagging homes with help from international aid and security teams, manager Bryant Castro said.
The storm was not part of any tropical system but rather a standard early-fall Caribbean storm caused by cold and dry conditions in the upper atmosphere, U.S. National Hurricane Center senior specialist Stacy Stewart told AP.
Haiti has not suffered a direct hit from a hurricane or tropical storm this year, but months of hurricane season remain. Forecasters are watching the remnants of Tropical Storm Matthew off the coast of Central America, which could transform into a "monsoon low" and threaten the Western Caribbean next week.
The impoverished nation was extremely vulnerable to damage from passing storms even before the quake. Port-au-Prince's Cite Soleil slum was flooded by rains in 2007. In 2008, four named storms struck in the space of a month, killing nearly 800 people and plunging the coastal city of Gonaives under water for weeks.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/09/25/international/i114854D02.DTL#ixzz10ZmoXxS9
5 killed as storm blasts through Haiti tent camps
By JONATHAN M. KATZ, Associated Press Writer Friday, September 24, 2010
(09-24) 20:28 PDT PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) --
A freak storm blasted through Haiti's capital on Friday, killing at least five earthquake survivors as it tore down trees, billboards and tent homes, authorities said.
Three adults and two children were killed in the tarp, tent and shack camps that still dominate Port-au-Prince more than eight months after the Jan. 12 earthquake, civil protection head Marie Alta Jean-Baptiste told The Associated Press. Several more were injured.
"We are investigating to see how many tents and camps were damaged," Jean-Baptiste said.
The storm passed through the mountain-ringed bowl of the Haitian capital, exposing rubble-filled neighborhoods to wind and rain at levels far below a sustained tropical storm. But that was enough to provoke panic and chaos, especially in encampments still home to more than 1.3 million people.
Gales sent tarps and poles flying, threw tin roofs into the sky and opened family shacks to falling rain. Wind rattled walls and windows of standing buildings with a clamor reminiscent of the quake itself.
"It was just a storm. Just a wind put us in a corner!" said Bresil Vignion, standing in the wreckage of his family's tin shack in a camp along the Canape-Vert road. "Tonight we don't know where we are going to sleep."
Reports of storm damage and deaths were slow to filter in as cell phone reception reamined degraded hours after the storm passed.
The sudden storm was not associated with any tropical system, Michael Lowry of the U.S. National Hurricane Center told The Associated Press. Meteorologists saw only a low-pressure system move across the Greater Antilles.
But for those living in this ravaged city, where reconstruction has barely begun, it was a forceful reminder of the danger still posed to a vulnerable country by an active Atlantic hurricane season months from being over.
"After what happened today, we hope we don't get a second one like it," said Patricia Pierre-Saint, a 47-year-old phone-card vendor who lost her home, child and husband in the quake.
Associated Press Television journalist Pierre-Richard Luxama contributed to this report
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/09/24/international/i180814D95.DTL#ixzz10Zk8CPIJ
(09-24) 20:28 PDT PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) --
A freak storm blasted through Haiti's capital on Friday, killing at least five earthquake survivors as it tore down trees, billboards and tent homes, authorities said.
"We are investigating to see how many tents and camps were damaged," Jean-Baptiste said.
The storm passed through the mountain-ringed bowl of the Haitian capital, exposing rubble-filled neighborhoods to wind and rain at levels far below a sustained tropical storm. But that was enough to provoke panic and chaos, especially in encampments still home to more than 1.3 million people.
Gales sent tarps and poles flying, threw tin roofs into the sky and opened family shacks to falling rain. Wind rattled walls and windows of standing buildings with a clamor reminiscent of the quake itself.
"It was just a storm. Just a wind put us in a corner!" said Bresil Vignion, standing in the wreckage of his family's tin shack in a camp along the Canape-Vert road. "Tonight we don't know where we are going to sleep."
Reports of storm damage and deaths were slow to filter in as cell phone reception reamined degraded hours after the storm passed.
But for those living in this ravaged city, where reconstruction has barely begun, it was a forceful reminder of the danger still posed to a vulnerable country by an active Atlantic hurricane season months from being over.
"After what happened today, we hope we don't get a second one like it," said Patricia Pierre-Saint, a 47-year-old phone-card vendor who lost her home, child and husband in the quake.
Associated Press Television journalist Pierre-Richard Luxama contributed to this report
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/09/24/international/i180814D95.DTL#ixzz10Zk8CPIJ
US court hears arguments in Haiti quake photos case
AFP American Edition - yesterday
A US judge heard arguments on Friday in a copyright case pitting a photojournalist who took pictures of the earthquake in Haiti against Agence France-Presse and other news organizations.
Judge William Pauley did not issue an immediate ruling on AFP's request that the case, filed by Daniel Morel, a Haitian-born freelance photographer, should be thrown out.
Morel posted at least 13 pictures of earthquake damage and victims to micro-blogging service Twitter on January 12, the day of the 7.0 magnitude quake that killed 250,000 people in Haiti.
The photographs were distributed to clients by AFP and its US partner Getty Images and used by other news outlets.
AFP, in a claim filed in March with the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, maintained that Morel provided a non-exclusive license to his pictures when he posted them on Twitter.
"AFP published Mr. Morel's photographs in good faith with the understanding that by posting them on Twitter, he had granted the requisite license to third parties to use, copy, publish, display and distribute those photographs," AFP said.
Morel, in a counterclaim filed against AFP, Getty Images, the ABC and CBS television networks and CNN owner Turner Broadcasting Inc., is asserting that AFP and Getty infringed his copyrights, resulting in lost sales.
In his claim, Morel is asking the court to dismiss the AFP suit, rule that AFP, Getty, CBS, ABC and CNN infringed his copyrights' and award damages.
Copyright 2010 AFP American Edition
http://inform.com/special-interests/court-hears-arguments-haiti-quake-photos-case-1563425a
A US judge heard arguments on Friday in a copyright case pitting a photojournalist who took pictures of the earthquake in Haiti against Agence France-Presse and other news organizations.
Judge William Pauley did not issue an immediate ruling on AFP's request that the case, filed by Daniel Morel, a Haitian-born freelance photographer, should be thrown out.
Morel posted at least 13 pictures of earthquake damage and victims to micro-blogging service Twitter on January 12, the day of the 7.0 magnitude quake that killed 250,000 people in Haiti.
The photographs were distributed to clients by AFP and its US partner Getty Images and used by other news outlets.
AFP, in a claim filed in March with the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, maintained that Morel provided a non-exclusive license to his pictures when he posted them on Twitter.
"AFP published Mr. Morel's photographs in good faith with the understanding that by posting them on Twitter, he had granted the requisite license to third parties to use, copy, publish, display and distribute those photographs," AFP said.
Morel, in a counterclaim filed against AFP, Getty Images, the ABC and CBS television networks and CNN owner Turner Broadcasting Inc., is asserting that AFP and Getty infringed his copyrights, resulting in lost sales.
In his claim, Morel is asking the court to dismiss the AFP suit, rule that AFP, Getty, CBS, ABC and CNN infringed his copyrights' and award damages.
Copyright 2010 AFP American Edition
http://inform.com/special-interests/court-hears-arguments-haiti-quake-photos-case-1563425a
Quebec companies line up to take part in reconstruction of Haiti
Meet with international banking officials in Montreal for information session THE GAZETTE SEPTEMBER 25, 2010
More than 100 Quebecbased companies keen to help in the reconstruction of earthquake-devastated Haiti met yesterday with international banking officials in Montreal.
The event, organized by the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal and the World Trade Centre, was of an introductory and informational nature, board president Michel Leblanc said.
The goal was to help Quebec companies understand the priorities of the funding agencies, which include the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Haiti Reconstruction Fund, along with the process of awarding contracts, he said.
"The process has been long and there is some cynicism about the tendering process," Leblanc said.
"We are doing what we can to accelerate the process," he added.
The response from Quebecers and the province's business community to the devastation caused by the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti convinced the board that Quebec businesses wanted to be part of reconstruction efforts, Leblanc said.
© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette
Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Quebec+companies+line+take+part+reconstruction+Haiti/3577256/story.html#ixzz10ZgBvLWd
More than 100 Quebecbased companies keen to help in the reconstruction of earthquake-devastated Haiti met yesterday with international banking officials in Montreal.
The event, organized by the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal and the World Trade Centre, was of an introductory and informational nature, board president Michel Leblanc said.
The goal was to help Quebec companies understand the priorities of the funding agencies, which include the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Haiti Reconstruction Fund, along with the process of awarding contracts, he said.
"The process has been long and there is some cynicism about the tendering process," Leblanc said.
"We are doing what we can to accelerate the process," he added.
The response from Quebecers and the province's business community to the devastation caused by the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti convinced the board that Quebec businesses wanted to be part of reconstruction efforts, Leblanc said.
© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette
Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Quebec+companies+line+take+part+reconstruction+Haiti/3577256/story.html#ixzz10ZgBvLWd
On Battle of the Blades, Laraque banking on sympathy vote
Battle of the Blades will feature former Montreal Canadien Georges Laraque in its next edition, starting Sunday, Sept. 26. Photograph by: cbc
By Jamie Hall, Postmedia News
Tough guy Georges Laraque says he’s pinning his hopes on the “sympathy vote” to get him through the CBC-TV competition, Battle of the Blades.
He’ll have plenty of that from Oilers’ fans, no doubt, whose support for him transcended his departure from Edmonton in 2006 after 10 years with the team. Still, for Laraque, the prospect of competing in a TVshow that requires him to throw a woman in the air and then catch her — while balancing on figure skates, no less — is, well, a bit of a nightmare. Add a live audience to the mix, and an average of three million or so TV viewers from across the country, and the nightmare disappears. After all, one has to sleep to dream, and he hasn’t been doing much of that lately.
He has been skating, though, faithfully. Every day for weeks now, Laraque, 33, has headed to Edmonton’s Glenora Club to prepare for his debut, spending hours on the ice.
“How’s it going? Um, it’s going, that’s about all I can say,” said Laraque following a practice session this week. “Listen, when I was in the NHL I wasn’t known as the smoothest skater, and figure skating is one of the most technical sports ever; it’s different from everything I was taught all my life. It’s really hard.”
He says he’s as ready as he can be for the show, which begins airing Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET from Toronto on CBC. Now in its second season, it pairs professional hockey players with champion figure skaters in an eight-week series in which the skaters compete for a $100,000 prize, to be donated to the winners’ charity of choice.
Last year, two Edmontonians, Olympian Jamie Sale — who’s returning again this year — and former Edmonton Oilers great Craig Simpson skated away with top honours, and donated their prize money to the Spinal Cord Injury Treatment Centre Society.
Every couple who competes receives a $25,000 donation to the charity of their choice which, in the end, was what broke the big man down.
When the show’s producers first asked him be part of the show, he said no, partly out of fear, but mostly because he’s so busy. Laraque, who spent most of his 14-year NHL career in Edmonton, retired from professional hockey earlier this year and is involved in several projects. He makes his home in Edmonton but travels often to Montreal, where he co-owns two vegan restaurants. He’s also involved in Terrasphere, a vertical farming movement, and PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), plus he’s also a deputy leader of the Green Party of Canada.
What’s nearest and dearest to his heart, though, is the Grace Children’s Hospital in Port-au-Prince, which he’s helping to rebuild. When producers of the show promised to shine a spotlight on hurricane-stricken Haiti (where his parents were born), it was an offer he simply couldn’t resist.
“If it helps in the rebuilding of the hospital and keeps Haiti in the news, it’s the least I can do,” he says. “It will be worth it, for as bad as I will look doing the show.”
He won’t say who his partner is — the pairings will officially be revealed during the first show — but you can’t keep a secret in Edmonton, especially if you’re Georges Laraque. Everyone knows Georges, and they’ve seen him at the Glenora Club practising with former Canadian pairs figure skater Anabelle Langlois.
“I can’t say who it is, but I can say she’s very, very patient,” says Laraque, “and she has taught me a lot.”
It’s no secret who Jamie Sale’s partner is, either. She and Theo Fleury have taken to the ice at the Glenora Club in recent weeks, for all the world to see. Another secret about Sale? Born in Calgary and raised for at least part of her life in Red Deer, Alta., she was a Calgary Flames fan growing up. It was Sale who convinced Fleury to compete when she ran into him at a charity function earlier this year in Toronto. And it was Fleury who told producers he would only take part if he could be partnered with Sale.
Sale said the decision to do the show again was a no-brainer for her.
“I like the process, I like the journey, I like the challenge, and I like the fun,” said Sale.
More than competing, she says, she loves to perform. And even more than that, she loves to teach, especially professional hockey players who have never laced up a pair of figure skates. Not that Fleury is teachable, of course.
“He’s pretty hard to give advice to because he’s so stubborn,” said Sale. She laughs when she says it, though; the two have established a good rapport. Sale says she has a great deal of respect for Fleury, who wrote about his personal struggles as a survivor of sexual abuse at the hands of former coach Graham James in a recent book, Playing With Fire.
“He’s a fantastic skater,” says Sale.”He’s also a very strong-willed character and he has his mind set on winning.
“We’re all a bit like that, because all of us have won something in our careers, but I told him: ‘We have no control over that; it’s a popularity contest.’ You can be the best skater, but you have to be yourself; you have to be real.’ “
David Pelletier is returning to the show, too, as a choreographer/coach. He and Sale split up earlier this year, but still maintain a professional working relationship. There’s a decidedly international flavour to the field this year. Two-time Olympic gold medallist and four-time world champion Ekaterina Gordeeva will be part of the group, as will former U.S. champion Kyoko Ina. They will be joined by Violetta Afanasieva, Shae-Lynn Bourne, Isabelle Brasseur and Christine Hough-Sweeney. Other former NHLers in the series are Valeri Bure, Patrice Brisebois, Kelly Chase, Russ Courtnall, P.J. Stock and Todd Warriner.
Battle of the Blades returns to CBC for a new season on Sunday, Sept. 26 at 8 p.m. ET.
© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette
http://www.montrealgazette.com/sports/Battle+Blades+Laraque+banking+sympathy+vote/3575395/story.html
Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/sports/Battle+Blades+Laraque+banking+sympathy+vote/3575395/story.html#ixzz10Zcl4uR9
Tough guy Georges Laraque says he’s pinning his hopes on the “sympathy vote” to get him through the CBC-TV competition, Battle of the Blades.
He’ll have plenty of that from Oilers’ fans, no doubt, whose support for him transcended his departure from Edmonton in 2006 after 10 years with the team. Still, for Laraque, the prospect of competing in a TVshow that requires him to throw a woman in the air and then catch her — while balancing on figure skates, no less — is, well, a bit of a nightmare. Add a live audience to the mix, and an average of three million or so TV viewers from across the country, and the nightmare disappears. After all, one has to sleep to dream, and he hasn’t been doing much of that lately.
He has been skating, though, faithfully. Every day for weeks now, Laraque, 33, has headed to Edmonton’s Glenora Club to prepare for his debut, spending hours on the ice.
“How’s it going? Um, it’s going, that’s about all I can say,” said Laraque following a practice session this week. “Listen, when I was in the NHL I wasn’t known as the smoothest skater, and figure skating is one of the most technical sports ever; it’s different from everything I was taught all my life. It’s really hard.”
He says he’s as ready as he can be for the show, which begins airing Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET from Toronto on CBC. Now in its second season, it pairs professional hockey players with champion figure skaters in an eight-week series in which the skaters compete for a $100,000 prize, to be donated to the winners’ charity of choice.
Last year, two Edmontonians, Olympian Jamie Sale — who’s returning again this year — and former Edmonton Oilers great Craig Simpson skated away with top honours, and donated their prize money to the Spinal Cord Injury Treatment Centre Society.
Every couple who competes receives a $25,000 donation to the charity of their choice which, in the end, was what broke the big man down.
When the show’s producers first asked him be part of the show, he said no, partly out of fear, but mostly because he’s so busy. Laraque, who spent most of his 14-year NHL career in Edmonton, retired from professional hockey earlier this year and is involved in several projects. He makes his home in Edmonton but travels often to Montreal, where he co-owns two vegan restaurants. He’s also involved in Terrasphere, a vertical farming movement, and PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), plus he’s also a deputy leader of the Green Party of Canada.
What’s nearest and dearest to his heart, though, is the Grace Children’s Hospital in Port-au-Prince, which he’s helping to rebuild. When producers of the show promised to shine a spotlight on hurricane-stricken Haiti (where his parents were born), it was an offer he simply couldn’t resist.
“If it helps in the rebuilding of the hospital and keeps Haiti in the news, it’s the least I can do,” he says. “It will be worth it, for as bad as I will look doing the show.”
He won’t say who his partner is — the pairings will officially be revealed during the first show — but you can’t keep a secret in Edmonton, especially if you’re Georges Laraque. Everyone knows Georges, and they’ve seen him at the Glenora Club practising with former Canadian pairs figure skater Anabelle Langlois.
“I can’t say who it is, but I can say she’s very, very patient,” says Laraque, “and she has taught me a lot.”
It’s no secret who Jamie Sale’s partner is, either. She and Theo Fleury have taken to the ice at the Glenora Club in recent weeks, for all the world to see. Another secret about Sale? Born in Calgary and raised for at least part of her life in Red Deer, Alta., she was a Calgary Flames fan growing up. It was Sale who convinced Fleury to compete when she ran into him at a charity function earlier this year in Toronto. And it was Fleury who told producers he would only take part if he could be partnered with Sale.
Sale said the decision to do the show again was a no-brainer for her.
“I like the process, I like the journey, I like the challenge, and I like the fun,” said Sale.
More than competing, she says, she loves to perform. And even more than that, she loves to teach, especially professional hockey players who have never laced up a pair of figure skates. Not that Fleury is teachable, of course.
“He’s pretty hard to give advice to because he’s so stubborn,” said Sale. She laughs when she says it, though; the two have established a good rapport. Sale says she has a great deal of respect for Fleury, who wrote about his personal struggles as a survivor of sexual abuse at the hands of former coach Graham James in a recent book, Playing With Fire.
“He’s a fantastic skater,” says Sale.”He’s also a very strong-willed character and he has his mind set on winning.
“We’re all a bit like that, because all of us have won something in our careers, but I told him: ‘We have no control over that; it’s a popularity contest.’ You can be the best skater, but you have to be yourself; you have to be real.’ “
David Pelletier is returning to the show, too, as a choreographer/coach. He and Sale split up earlier this year, but still maintain a professional working relationship. There’s a decidedly international flavour to the field this year. Two-time Olympic gold medallist and four-time world champion Ekaterina Gordeeva will be part of the group, as will former U.S. champion Kyoko Ina. They will be joined by Violetta Afanasieva, Shae-Lynn Bourne, Isabelle Brasseur and Christine Hough-Sweeney. Other former NHLers in the series are Valeri Bure, Patrice Brisebois, Kelly Chase, Russ Courtnall, P.J. Stock and Todd Warriner.
Battle of the Blades returns to CBC for a new season on Sunday, Sept. 26 at 8 p.m. ET.
© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette
http://www.montrealgazette.com/sports/Battle+Blades+Laraque+banking+sympathy+vote/3575395/story.html
Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/sports/Battle+Blades+Laraque+banking+sympathy+vote/3575395/story.html#ixzz10Zcl4uR9
L'héritage contesté de Michaëlle Jean
Publié le 25 septembre 2010 Louise Leduc, La Presse
Quand a été annoncé en juin le départ prochain de Michaëlle Jean, le Globe and Mail ne l'a pas ménagée. Quand il s'agira de lui trouver un successeur, pouvait-on lire dans le quotidien, -chose qui n'était pas encore faite à ce moment-là- Stephen Harper serait bien avisé «de viser plus haut».
«Son départ va permettre la nomination d'un individu véritablement méritant et intellectuellement rigoureux, tel que le commande cette fonction.»
Les «qualités populistes» de Mme Jean, était-il encore écrit, ne pouvaient suffire à elles seules: «La journaliste de télévision au profil limité» qu'elle était n'avait jamais su «susciter le respect des élites politiques» comme le commandait son rôle.
Dans les jours qui ont suivi, le Globe and Mail, bon joueur, a publié les réactions de ses lecteurs unanimement outrés. «À la suite de votre très inélégant éditorial, vous faites référence aux élites politiques canadiennes. J'ai demandé autour de moi, et personne n'a jamais entendu parler de cela, des élites politiques canadiennes.»
Presque au même moment, bouclant la boucle, Jean-Daniel Lafond, le mari de Michaëlle Jean, accordait en France une entrevue au magazine L'Express qui n'a pas manqué de faire des vagues de ce côté de l'Atlantique. Le séparatisme, disait-il, était une «aberration géopolitique», ajoutant: «Je n'ai jamais été fasciné par le nationalisme, mais j'ai compris que je ne pouvais pas ne pas vivre avec. C'est autre chose. Je ne me suis jamais senti à l'aise avec ce nationalisme.»
De toute façon, disait-il plus loin, «les vrais premiers Québécois, ici, ce sont des néo-Québécois: ma femme est née en Haïti, moi en France. C'est une image accomplie de l'immigrant.» Cette nouvelle sortie, littéralement «applaudie» par le National Post, a rappelé à chacun la controverse qui avait secoué le couple à son arrivée à Rideau Hall.
Séparatiste ou non?
Très vite on avait montré un documentaire réalisé par Jean-Daniel Lafond (qui allait devenir son époux) dans lequel on voit Michaëlle Jean porter un toast à l'indépendance au cours d'une rencontre à laquelle participait l'ex-felquiste Pierre Vallières. Dans le livre La Manière nègre ou Aimé Césaire, chemin faisant: genèse d'un film, Michaëlle Jean écrivait que «l'indépendance, ça ne se donne pas, ça se prend», tandis que Lafond, lui, déclarait: «Alors, un Québec souverain? Un Québec indépendant? Oui, et j'applaudis des deux mains et je promets d'être de tous les défilés de toutes les Saint-Jean.»
Le Canada anglais a bondi. Comment? Une séparatiste au poste de gouverneur général? Michaëlle Jean avait nié, Jean-Daniel Lafond avait nié, puis, sortant de son carton, avait faite cette autre surprenante déclaration au sujet de la nomination de sa femme. «J'avais déjà imaginé que ce serait possible. J'ai pensé effectivement que s'il y avait de l'audace, on mettrait une femme assez jeune, noire et communicatrice.»
C'est là-dessus qu'est entrée en poste Michaëlle Jean. Entre le lever et la tombée du rideau, Jean-Daniel Lafond s'est effacé et la gouverneure générale a réellement pris le devant de la scène.
Il y a bien sûr eu quelques controverses. Michaëlle Jean aurait légèrement déplacé géographiquement les Rocheuses. À un autre moment, elle se serait un peu méprise sur la nature exacte de son rôle, se décrivant à tort (et instruisant du coup une bonne partie de la population canadienne qui croyait de même) comme le chef d'État. Deux fois plutôt qu'une, elle a été prise entre l'arbre et l'écorce et a dû permettre à Stephen Harper de proroger le Parlement.
Outre-mer, elle a brillé, notamment en 2008, où son charisme a rendu les Français gagas. Dans la presse française, Michaëlle Jean était dépeinte comme «un mélange élégant de Lady Diana et de Nelson Mandela», «désarmante de charme et de simplicité» avec son «port altier» et son «regard pétillant».
Ici, elle a frappé dans le mille en revêtant l'uniforme militaire le 11 novembre 2009.
Une chef émotive
Puis, est survenu le tremblement de terre en Haïti. On a alors vu Michaëlle Jean, touchée en plein coeur, pleurer publiquement.
Dans une chronique qui se voulait sympathique, cette fois, le Globe and Mail a écrit que cette tragédie aura mis en lumière le malaise que suscite parfois Michaëlle Jean au pays.
«On appelle cela l'émotion. Elle aura été, et de loin, la vice-reine la plus ouverte et la plus émotive de l'histoire. (Or), plus vous montez dans la chaîne alimentaire politique et publique, plus il vous faut du courage pour afficher vos émotions. Et ce n'est pas le genre de courage qui est le plus universellement apprécié à Ottawa», pouvait-on lire.
«Sa passion a transcendé le protocole», tranche pour sa part Benoît Pelletier, ex-ministre des Affaires intergouvernementales dans le gouvernement de Jean Charest. Elle a redoré le blason du rôle de gouverneur général au point de donner le goût aux Canadiens anglais de s'approprier ce symbole, de le canadianiser, en quelque sorte, peu importe ce qu'il adviendra de la monarchie.»
Si les avis des constitutionnalistes étaient partagés, à l'époque, Benoît Pelletier estime qu'elle n'a commis aucun impair lors des deux demandes de prorogation. «Quand un premier ministre demande une prorogation, le gouverneur général n'a à peu près pas d'autre choix que de lui obéir. Peut-être a-t-il une petite marge de manoeuvre quand la demande est en fait un stratagème pour éviter une défaite parlementaire, mais encore là, cette discrétion est vraiment très mince et très théorique dans les faits.»
Pour le reste, si les accointances souverainistes de Michaëlle Jean l'ont peut-être rendue suspecte au départ au Canada anglais, elle a bien rebondi ensuite, enchaîne M. Pelletier. «Le fait qu'elle ait choisi pour devise de ses armoiries de Briser les armoiries a beaucoup plu, tout comme cette délicate attention dont elle a fait montre en revêtant l'uniforme militaire le jour du Souvenir.»
«Ce qu'elle dégage l'a finalement emporté sur tout le reste, avance pour sa part le politologue Jean-Herman Guay. Certains lui ont reproché son trop-plein de larmes, son trop-plein d'émotion pour une gouverneur générale, mais il faudrait se brancher! On n'arrête pas de reprocher aux politiciens d'être trop en contrôle!»
Et contrairement à certains autres gouverneurs généraux ou lieutenants-gouverneurs, poursuit M. Guay, elle ne s'est jamais fait reprocher de trop dépenser.
Au final, conclut-il, «elle a joué son rôle avec un charme certain, avec une certaine hauteur».
http://www.cyberpresse.ca/actualites/quebec-canada/politique-canadienne/201009/24/01-4326532-lheritage-conteste-de-michaelle-jean.php
Quand a été annoncé en juin le départ prochain de Michaëlle Jean, le Globe and Mail ne l'a pas ménagée. Quand il s'agira de lui trouver un successeur, pouvait-on lire dans le quotidien, -chose qui n'était pas encore faite à ce moment-là- Stephen Harper serait bien avisé «de viser plus haut».
 |
| Dans la presse française, Michaëlle Jean était dépeinte comme «un mélange élégant de Lady Diana et de Nelson Mandela». PHOTO: GEOFF HOWE, PC |
Les «qualités populistes» de Mme Jean, était-il encore écrit, ne pouvaient suffire à elles seules: «La journaliste de télévision au profil limité» qu'elle était n'avait jamais su «susciter le respect des élites politiques» comme le commandait son rôle.
Dans les jours qui ont suivi, le Globe and Mail, bon joueur, a publié les réactions de ses lecteurs unanimement outrés. «À la suite de votre très inélégant éditorial, vous faites référence aux élites politiques canadiennes. J'ai demandé autour de moi, et personne n'a jamais entendu parler de cela, des élites politiques canadiennes.»
Presque au même moment, bouclant la boucle, Jean-Daniel Lafond, le mari de Michaëlle Jean, accordait en France une entrevue au magazine L'Express qui n'a pas manqué de faire des vagues de ce côté de l'Atlantique. Le séparatisme, disait-il, était une «aberration géopolitique», ajoutant: «Je n'ai jamais été fasciné par le nationalisme, mais j'ai compris que je ne pouvais pas ne pas vivre avec. C'est autre chose. Je ne me suis jamais senti à l'aise avec ce nationalisme.»
De toute façon, disait-il plus loin, «les vrais premiers Québécois, ici, ce sont des néo-Québécois: ma femme est née en Haïti, moi en France. C'est une image accomplie de l'immigrant.» Cette nouvelle sortie, littéralement «applaudie» par le National Post, a rappelé à chacun la controverse qui avait secoué le couple à son arrivée à Rideau Hall.
Séparatiste ou non?
Très vite on avait montré un documentaire réalisé par Jean-Daniel Lafond (qui allait devenir son époux) dans lequel on voit Michaëlle Jean porter un toast à l'indépendance au cours d'une rencontre à laquelle participait l'ex-felquiste Pierre Vallières. Dans le livre La Manière nègre ou Aimé Césaire, chemin faisant: genèse d'un film, Michaëlle Jean écrivait que «l'indépendance, ça ne se donne pas, ça se prend», tandis que Lafond, lui, déclarait: «Alors, un Québec souverain? Un Québec indépendant? Oui, et j'applaudis des deux mains et je promets d'être de tous les défilés de toutes les Saint-Jean.»
Le Canada anglais a bondi. Comment? Une séparatiste au poste de gouverneur général? Michaëlle Jean avait nié, Jean-Daniel Lafond avait nié, puis, sortant de son carton, avait faite cette autre surprenante déclaration au sujet de la nomination de sa femme. «J'avais déjà imaginé que ce serait possible. J'ai pensé effectivement que s'il y avait de l'audace, on mettrait une femme assez jeune, noire et communicatrice.»
C'est là-dessus qu'est entrée en poste Michaëlle Jean. Entre le lever et la tombée du rideau, Jean-Daniel Lafond s'est effacé et la gouverneure générale a réellement pris le devant de la scène.
Il y a bien sûr eu quelques controverses. Michaëlle Jean aurait légèrement déplacé géographiquement les Rocheuses. À un autre moment, elle se serait un peu méprise sur la nature exacte de son rôle, se décrivant à tort (et instruisant du coup une bonne partie de la population canadienne qui croyait de même) comme le chef d'État. Deux fois plutôt qu'une, elle a été prise entre l'arbre et l'écorce et a dû permettre à Stephen Harper de proroger le Parlement.
Outre-mer, elle a brillé, notamment en 2008, où son charisme a rendu les Français gagas. Dans la presse française, Michaëlle Jean était dépeinte comme «un mélange élégant de Lady Diana et de Nelson Mandela», «désarmante de charme et de simplicité» avec son «port altier» et son «regard pétillant».
Ici, elle a frappé dans le mille en revêtant l'uniforme militaire le 11 novembre 2009.
Une chef émotive
Puis, est survenu le tremblement de terre en Haïti. On a alors vu Michaëlle Jean, touchée en plein coeur, pleurer publiquement.
Dans une chronique qui se voulait sympathique, cette fois, le Globe and Mail a écrit que cette tragédie aura mis en lumière le malaise que suscite parfois Michaëlle Jean au pays.
«On appelle cela l'émotion. Elle aura été, et de loin, la vice-reine la plus ouverte et la plus émotive de l'histoire. (Or), plus vous montez dans la chaîne alimentaire politique et publique, plus il vous faut du courage pour afficher vos émotions. Et ce n'est pas le genre de courage qui est le plus universellement apprécié à Ottawa», pouvait-on lire.
«Sa passion a transcendé le protocole», tranche pour sa part Benoît Pelletier, ex-ministre des Affaires intergouvernementales dans le gouvernement de Jean Charest. Elle a redoré le blason du rôle de gouverneur général au point de donner le goût aux Canadiens anglais de s'approprier ce symbole, de le canadianiser, en quelque sorte, peu importe ce qu'il adviendra de la monarchie.»
Si les avis des constitutionnalistes étaient partagés, à l'époque, Benoît Pelletier estime qu'elle n'a commis aucun impair lors des deux demandes de prorogation. «Quand un premier ministre demande une prorogation, le gouverneur général n'a à peu près pas d'autre choix que de lui obéir. Peut-être a-t-il une petite marge de manoeuvre quand la demande est en fait un stratagème pour éviter une défaite parlementaire, mais encore là, cette discrétion est vraiment très mince et très théorique dans les faits.»
Pour le reste, si les accointances souverainistes de Michaëlle Jean l'ont peut-être rendue suspecte au départ au Canada anglais, elle a bien rebondi ensuite, enchaîne M. Pelletier. «Le fait qu'elle ait choisi pour devise de ses armoiries de Briser les armoiries a beaucoup plu, tout comme cette délicate attention dont elle a fait montre en revêtant l'uniforme militaire le jour du Souvenir.»
«Ce qu'elle dégage l'a finalement emporté sur tout le reste, avance pour sa part le politologue Jean-Herman Guay. Certains lui ont reproché son trop-plein de larmes, son trop-plein d'émotion pour une gouverneur générale, mais il faudrait se brancher! On n'arrête pas de reprocher aux politiciens d'être trop en contrôle!»
Et contrairement à certains autres gouverneurs généraux ou lieutenants-gouverneurs, poursuit M. Guay, elle ne s'est jamais fait reprocher de trop dépenser.
Au final, conclut-il, «elle a joué son rôle avec un charme certain, avec une certaine hauteur».
http://www.cyberpresse.ca/actualites/quebec-canada/politique-canadienne/201009/24/01-4326532-lheritage-conteste-de-michaelle-jean.php
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